Incomplete Directions

Review Frequenters of the Downtown New York scene know Steve Dalachinsky as both a poet and a faithful and enthusiastic attender of (and sometime-M.C. for) avant-garde jazz concerts. Now, extending the Beat tradition he comes out of as a writer, he's mixed those two worlds with a 33-track album that finds him interacting with the cream of the scene, players such as trumpeter Roy Campbell, pianist Matthew Shipp, bassist William Parker, drummer Susie Ibarra, and saxophonist Assif Tsahar, among others.That Dalachinsky remains the focus amid all that musical talent is a testament to the quality of his writing. Penetrating observations are couched in natural language, as on "The Saxophone Factory (for Ben Webster)," when he reads, "she's young / her blues are on / the bright side." Or on "For Mary," when he reads, "mary / your albums are so much / like you / in such bad shape / & so scratchy / & they skip & / get stuck so / much."Only the music of the title track, composed by guitarist Vito Ricci, was prepared in advance, and the musicians - working singly, or in pairs or trios with Dalachinsky - didn't know before the sessions what they'd be complementing, nor was there rehearsal. The resulting improvisations are fresh and always appropriate, however, both because Dalachinksy drew on his years of experience listening to these artists to fit their styles to the poems' moods and because the musicians are so responsive to the moods of his writing.A few examples: On "The Saxophone Factory," Parker's bass starts out insinuating the blues without resorting to a blues structure, then moves into aptly lyrical, bittersweet bowing halfway through when the words darken. On "Duets (an Excerpt)," Tsahar and Ibarra's nearly ephemeral lines spiral around each other like smoke plumes, mirroring the poem's sometimes concrete, sometimes abstract images of a couple's interactions. Shipp stalks Dalachinsky's rhythms on "3 Card Monty (or Eating the Red)" and "One Thin Line," offering gentle accents and never overpowering the reading as his usual style might.Jazz poetry has often seemed more promising as a concept than in reality, but here, it's an unqualified success on all levels.--Steve Holtje, JAZZIZ Magazine Copyright © 2000, Milor Entertainment, Inc. -- From Jazziz

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